march2 2017
VERNONIA’S
volume11 issue5
reflecting the spirit of our community
www.vernoniasvoice.com
Logger Boys Head to Pendleton Again
The Loggers basketball team will de-
fend last year’s state title March 2-4
The Vernonia Loggers boys bas-
ketball team is heading to the State Tour-
nament and will have a chance to defend
their state title.
The Loggers, seeded #9 in the 16
team playoff, defeated #8 seeded Toledo
53-45 on Friday, February 24, and earned
a trip to the OSAA U.S. Bank/Les Schwab
Tires 2A State Championship on March
2-4 in Pendleton. The Loggers won the
state championship last season.
This is the Loggers’ fourth trip to
Pendleton in the last six years under the di-
rection of head coach David Weller. “It’s
tough to get to the fi nal eight,” said Weller
during a practice session on Monday, Feb-
ruary 27, as the Loggers prepared for their
trip. “It wasn’t easy and we’re excited to
be going back again.”
Against Toledo Weller said the
Loggers did not play their best. “They
scouted us really well, and seemed to know
everything we were going to try and do of-
fensively,” said Weller. “It threw us out of
our game a little bit. And combine that with
playing in their building in a hostile envi-
ronment, and we just couldn’t get going of-
fensively at all.”
After falling behind by nine points,
the Loggers made a run in the second quar-
ter and pulled to within three at the half.
But Toledo came out in the second half and
built a 10 point lead with three minutes left
in the third quarter. “We called a time out
and told them not to quit now,” said Weller
“And they just started chipping away, one
possession at a time, and the next thing you
know we had momentum on our side.”
The Loggers took the lead against
Toledo with about three minutes left, spread
the court and made some easy layups, and
made their free throws down the stretch to
seal the victory.
In Pendleton, the Loggers will have
their work cut out for them as they will face
#1 seed Western Mennonite in the opening
inside
3
salem report
an unusual
culinary column
15
where in the world?
15
where do you
read the voice?
St. Patrick’s Day Parade!
Friday, March 17th at 5:15 pm
Everyone
is welcome
Starts at
Pat & Darlene
Knight’s house
Bridge Street &
State Avenue
Vernonia Wrestlers Win Districts
Five Loggers win individ-
ual district titles; Williams
takes third at State
Tournament after fi nishing second at
106.
Jackson’s win was espe-
cially noteworthy, as she became the
The Vernonia High School
wrestling team won the Oregon
2A/1A Special District 1 meet on
February 18, destroying the compe-
tition and winning by 100 points.
The Loggers scored 290
points in the tournament and quali-
fi ed six wrestlers for the State Tour-
nament; the next closest team to the
Loggers was Neah-Kah-Nie with
190 points.
Five Loggers brought home
individual District Champion-
ship medals: Kailia Jackson at 106
pounds, Elijah Bozied at 113, Mekhi
Williams at 126, Justin Fletcher at
138, and Storm Henson at 152. Ja-
cob Pasko also qualifi ed for the State
fi rst female wrestler in Vernonia his-
tory to win a District title and also
the fi rst female to qualify for the
State Tournament from Vernonia.
The tournament win was
a complete team effort with every
one of the Logger wrestlers placing
in the tournament and contributing
points to the victory.
Other medalist at the Dis-
trict Tournament for the Loggers
included Amanda-Rose Sicard who
took third at 113, Joshua Sholes
who took third and Zach Larke who
placed fi fth at 120, Isaiah Bozied
who placed fi fth at 126, Jake Pat-
ton who took third and Lene Ja-
Clay Sullivan
round of the eight team tournament, but it’s
a match up the Loggers are looking forward
to. The Loggers played Western Mennonite
earlier this season on December 12 as part
of their non-league schedule, losing 55-41.
“Our guys are looking forward to
this and I like the challenge,” said Weller.
“We want to play them again because we
know we’re better than what we put out
there against them last time. We just have to
go out there and compete.”
The Loggers fi nished with a 14-4
record in the Northwest League and have a
22-5 record overall on the season.
The Loggers fi nished their regu-
lar season in fourth place in the league but
earned their spot in the state playoffs af-
ter defeating fi fth place Nestucca 62-29 at
home in a District playoff game on February
16, and then beating third place Life Chris-
tian 45-40 at the District Tournament in For-
est Grove on February 18.
Following the District Tournament,
continued on page 10
continued on page 10
Working Class Hero
Local author and musician
Willy Vlautin discusses his
writing, living on the fringe,
and
fi nding
inspiration,
during his appearance at the
Vernonia Library
By Scott Laird
7
free
Writer, musician, and western
Renaissance man Willy Vlautin gave
an insightful and engaging glimpse into
his life and his work during his recent
stop at the Vernonia Library on Febru-
ary 21.
Vlautin is the author of four
acclaimed published novels, including
Lean on Pete and The Motel Life and
is also a founding member of the alt-
country music group Richmond Fon-
taine. He currently headlines a new
band, The Delines.
Vlautin is a natural storytell-
er, who at times is both charming and
coarse, as well as humorous and hon-
est, as he discusses the dark topics that
are the subjects he writes about. His
appearance in Vernonia provided an in-
sightful look into the mind of a complex
and talented artist, whose work often
chronicles those living on the outside
edges of society.
Originally from Reno, Nevada,
Vlautin moved to Portland, Oregon
when he was 26 years old in the hopes
of fi nding an arts community he could
join. “My family was really conserva-
tive and I came to Portland with the idea
that I could be a musician up here and
be around more open minded people,”
said Vlautin during his Vernonia visit.
Vlautin currently lives in Scappoose,
Oregon.
The personable and charismatic
Vlautin talked with an appealing
western drawl and smiled and grinned
as he shared his engaging stories about
his writing and his life. He focused his
talk on his book, Lean on Pete, which
was the featured book group choice for
continued on page 12